


4x08 Missing Scenes; AU

by datleggy



Category: 9-1-1 (TV)
Genre: 4x08, Coda, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Idiots in Love, M/M, Mutual Pining, Protective Evan "Buck" Buckley, one shots
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-14
Updated: 2021-03-14
Packaged: 2021-03-22 20:54:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,310
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30044592
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/datleggy/pseuds/datleggy
Summary: SPOILERS FOR 4x08One shots of the missing scene or alternate versions of said scene after Christopher runs away from home.
Relationships: Evan "Buck" Buckley/Eddie Diaz (9-1-1 TV)
Comments: 10
Kudos: 111





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> each chapter is a new unrelated one shot for 4x08

Eddie's torn between unimaginable relief and frustration, as he makes his way down the hall to Buck's apartment.

On one hand he wants to sweep Christopher up into his arms, squeeze tight and never let go, and on other he wants to yell until he's hoarse about how dangerous the stunt he pulled tonight was.

He's still deciding between the two choices when he opens the door quietly and slips inside, just in time to hear his kid sob into Buck's shoulder. "I want _you_ to be my dad."

And suddenly it's as though all of the air has been knocked right out of him. It's a miracle he stays standing upright, quite frankly.

He stands there in silence, watches the way Buck cradles his son, the easy way in which he provides comfort.

Eventually Christopher falls asleep against Buck and he watches his best friend slowly get up, careful not to stir Christopher as he places him gently onto the couch. Buck drapes a knitted throw blanket over him before tucking him in.

Buck sits atop his coffee table and takes his phone out of his jean pocket--presumably to check on Eddie's whereabouts. And it's only then that Eddie makes his presence known.

"Hey." His voice comes out rough.

Buck looks up in surprise. "Hey," he half whispers, leading them both over to the kitchen where they can speak freely, without fear of waking Christopher up. The kid’s exhausted. “When did you get here?” he asks, taking two beers out of the fridge. 

Eddie leans against the sink and frowns. “You mean did I get here in time to hear my kid call you dad?” 

Buck nearly drops both bottles, setting them down on his counter just in time. “Eddie, uh, that’s--it’s not what you think.” he swears. 

“Not what I think? What the hell else is it, then?” Eddie shakes his head. “How am I supposed to take that?” he looks up at Buck and lets out a long sigh. “I’m sorry, I’m not mad at you, I’m mad at myself. I wasn’t ready for his reaction to me dating again and then when I heard him say--” 

“Eddie, seriously, that’s not it.” Buck denies. “You don’t understand.” he struggles with his words for a moment. “I found him wandering the hallway when I came back in from taking out the trash tonight, I brought him inside, I called you, obviously, and then we sat down to talk. I told him that you dating someone new didn’t mean you two would forget his mom or replace her in any way and he said he knew that.” 

Eddie raises his eyebrows in surprise. “So, then why...?” 

Buck huffs out a big breath, preparing himself for Eddie’s reaction to this next thing. “He thought you and _I_ were already dating and that’s why he got so upset when you told him, because the last time you went on a date I was babysitting so he knew it wasn’t _me_ you were talking about. That’s what he meant when he said he wanted me to be his dad.” 

Eddie stares at Buck with wide eyes. “Oh. Oh. _Oh_.” Well shit. “He meant...he wanted you to be his dad, _too_.” 

Buck nods. “Yeah. I explained to him that you know, I’m always gonna be there for him, but that uh, you and I don’t have _that_ kind of a relationship. Honestly, I was kinda shocked, so I don’t know how well I did in that conversation.” he scratches the back of his head awkwardly. “Eddie, I’m sorry, this is all my fault.” 

“What? No, why do you think that?” It’s just a misunderstanding, Eddie wants to say, but then it begs the question of why Christopher would misinterpret their relationship the way he did, and he’s not sure he has an answer. 

“I’m the one who’s always butting into your lives, inviting myself over to your house for game nights and movie nights--” 

“Buck, no. That’s--we’re best friends, that’s normal.” Eddie denies. Isn’t it? 

Buck groans, “Eddie, I’ve been to _how_ many playdates between Christopher and Denny, now? The last time when Karen and I were in the kitchen getting snacks for the kids she made a joke about me being your boyfriend and I didn’t think anything of it at the time, but now that I do--Eddie, that’s not the first time someone’s commented something similar. Hell, remember like three years ago when we took Christopher to see Santa? An elf made a comment about how cute _our_ son was. _An elf, Eddie_.” 

Eddie blinks. “I--well, that’s--” he pauses and folds his arms across his chest. “So, we’re close. That’s not weird.” 

Buck runs a hand through his hair, “It’s kinda weird that everyone around us-- _strangers_ , even--seem to think you and I are a thing. And not that I care about what other people think, because I don’t. But it’s not fair to Christopher. I don’t want him to get hurt because I suck at keeping boundaries.” 

“I know what you’re saying but then where does that leave us?” Eddie grimaces tightly. Buck is his best friend and not to mention a co worker. Their lives are undeniably intermingled, and Eddie doesn’t want it any other way. 

“I don’t know.” Buck admits. “Maybe I just need to back off for a little bit.” 

“Christopher would hate that. You know how much he likes hanging out with you.” 

“No, I know. I meant, back away from you?” 

Eddie gulps. “From me?” He clears his throat. “Even at work?” 

Buck nods, shrugging. “I’m sure Christopher got some idea from the little comments people around us make here and there and so, if we just, don’t give ‘em anything to talk about, Christopher will see we’re just friends and nothing more.” 

“Right.” Eddie agrees hesitantly. 

Friends and nothing more. 

That’s all they are. 


	2. Chapter 2

By the time he manages to grab his keys, jump into his truck, drive halfway across town and find parking in Buck’s neighborhood, Eddie is a mess of nerves as he makes his way across the threshold and into the loft. “Buck, where’s--” 

Buck shushes him immediately, pointing upstairs to where his bedroom is. “He’s exhausted. He ate one of those oven ready mac n’ cheese meals in my fridge and practically fell asleep on my couch; I carried him up to bed a few minutes ago. He’s knocked out up there.” 

Eddie sighs, the relief he feels is staggering. 

He quietly makes his way upstairs and lingers at the top step, watching his kid sleep soundly, his chest moving up and down rhythmically with every breath he takes. Eddie stands there and simply takes in the sight for a handful of minutes before slowly making his way back down and to the kitchen, where Buck is leaning back against his counter sipping on a beer. 

There’s another one on the table waiting for him and he gratefully grabs it, taking a long gulp before sitting it back down and letting out a deep sigh. 

“So uh, what exactly happened?” Buck asks, and there’s something about his tone Eddie can’t decipher, but he knows it’s not good. 

“I told you already, he found out I started dating someone and _clearly_ he didn’t take it so well.” Eddie takes another swig of his beer, huffing in frustration. 

Buck places his drink down on the counter and folds his arms, “Yeah, I know that part, what I don’t get is how Christopher managed to literally _run away from home_ with you _in_ the house? What were you doing when he _took_ your phone, used it to call an Uber and had some _stranger_ drive him here in the middle of the _night_?” 

Accusatory. That’s what that tone is, Eddie finally identifies. “Are you serious right now?” he slams his beer bottle down with unnecessary force and Buck gives him a warning look. 

He half whispers, half yells, when he says, “No shit I’m serious. Answer the question.” 

Eddie blinks, surprised and equal parts irritated by the ire he’s receiving from _Buck_ of all people. Lawsuit aside, Buck has never not been on Eddie’s side; this entire confrontation feels wrong and foreign to him. “I was on a video call with Ana, I had my headphones in, I knew Christopher was upset about the news, but I didn’t think he would--” 

“This? What happened tonight? This was the best case scenario, and I know damn well you know that. Christopher got into some strangers car tonight. Eddie, what if I hadn’t been home? He didn’t have a phone with him or anything, he didn’t even take your copy of my key with him, just in case Albert and I weren’t here. What the hell would he have done then? Hung out in the hallway or God forbid roamed the streets and waited for someone to notice an unattended _nine_ year old?” Buck’s been angry before, but nothing compares to the wrath brewing somewhere deep in the pit of his belly right now.

Eddie goes on the defense, glaring at Buck from across the table in the half light. “It’s so _easy_ for you to stand there and judge me when you’re not a parent yourself, Buck. What do you expect from me? I can’t keep an eye on Christopher twenty four seven--how the hell was I supposed to know he’d leave like that?!” 

Buck glares at him right back, matching his intensity, times ten. “First of all, keep your voice down--he’s _sleeping_.” Buck plows on, even as Eddie tries to talk over him. “And secondly, I don’t need to be a parent to know you fucked up tonight the same way I don’t need to be a pilot to know that if the plane went down something’s _wrong_. How could you not hear him _leaving_? Were you two watching a goddamn movie over skype, is that why you didn’t hear the damn door open _and_ shut? Christopher’s a lot of things, but stealthy isn’t one of ‘em Eddie.” 

“What the fuck is your problem right now? What? You think I don’t feel shitty enough already? You wanna add insult to injury on top of everything?” Eddie scoffs, aggravated and hurt and on the attack. “I don’t need you to lecture me on how to take care of _my_ kid. He’s mine, not yours, in case you forgot.” 

Buck takes a step back, like he’s been dealt a harsh blow. “That’s not--I’m not saying--” he stammers, his face crumpling into despair. “ _I was scared._ ” he hides his face in his palms, exhaling fully. “Jesus Christ Eddie, I saw him standing outside my building in the cold, trying to work the handle, and he was _alone_ and when I brought him inside and he told me everything, about the phone and the Uber ride I instantly thought about every single little thing that could have gone so horribly wrong, how it was a miracle he made it all the way here and that he was _safe_ \--” his voice cracks on the last word and he turns his back to Eddie, his shoulders shaking. 

Fear. Fear is what Eddie had felt. Instant hot white fear and an overwhelming panic, for those few brief awful moments wherein he’d had no idea where Christopher had run off to. 

“Shit.” Eddie lets out an audible breath. 

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to say that--you’re a good dad, I just--all I can think about right now is the tsunami, about how I _lost_ Christopher, about how I couldn’t breathe until--” 

“You found him.” Eddie finishes softly. He makes his way to Buck and settles a hand on his shoulder, his thumb brushing the nape of his neck. “I know the feeling. Trust me. Every parents worst nightmare.” 

Buck turns around, his eyes wide and wet with unshed tears. “I know I’m not Christopher’s dad, I swear that’s not what I was trying to--” 

Eddie shakes his head. “That wasn’t fair, what I said. I know everyone sees me and thinks, ‘single dad’, but I don’t know if I would have survived this whole parenting thing without you by my side, Buck. And that’s the hard truth. I mean, hell, we get into an argument and the _first_ person Christopher turns to is you. You know that’s gotta count for something, don’t you?” 

Buck swipes at his face when a stray tear rolls down his cheek. “Sorry...about what I said. I think I was just projecting.” 

Eddie gulps, “No. You weren’t.” he admits, pressing his lips together. “I did fuck up tonight. Big time. I should have been in Christopher’s room, talking to him about everything, trying to explain to him that nothing about our relationship is going to change, just because I’m dating, and that no one could replace his mother, I should have been in there, making sure he understood--especially after how volatile his reaction was and then the whole storming off after. Instead I decided to spend an hour on skype talking to Ana about it.” He sighs. “Christopher’s been my first and main priority for so long, I guess I’m not used to splitting my attention between two people. I uh, I need to work on that...” 

“Bucky?” 

Eddie and Buck both whip their heads up to where Christopher is leaning against the railing, peeking down at the both of them. 

“Hey bud, you ok?” Buck hastily tries to turn his expression into something more neutral. 

“Had a bad dream.” Christopher looks at the two men pleadingly. “Can you guys come sleep with me?” 

Eddie turns to Buck and they communicate silently, with only a couple of looks, ultimately deciding that it is, in fact, bedtime. 

“We’ll be right up.” Eddie tells him. 

**Author's Note:**

> thanku for reading :) !!
> 
> originally posted on tumblr @ datleggy


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